Did you receive a call from “Google” about your website?

most likely not…

that is unless you asked them to(more on that later). in fact, shortly after launch virtually every client for whom we build a website receives a call from someone reporting to be from “Google”. in the most recent instance a client was called by Not-Google and told their website wouldn’t be available in Google search results unless they paid a maintenance fee to keep it up to date. thankfully the client reached out to us for validation and we were able to let them know the details.

does Google charge?NO. according to Google’s article on this subject they do not charge for inclusion in Google My Business or in Google Search.

then what’s the deal with the phone calls?
most sites netfishes builds are for small businesses or organizations intend to have customers call them for services or information. so, it makes sense that we include a phone number somewhere on the site. well unfortunately that comes with an unintended consequence. non-Google border-line nefarious leeches then scrape these web pages, or read the text by automated methods, to acquire that information and use it to fish for potential “customers”.

will Google ever call me?
in the vast majority of instances Google will only call you by request. this rule may not always apply but nonetheless the point remains that you will not be charged to use the services mentioned previously. instances where this might occur are:

so should you ever receive a call from someone claiming to be Google to sell you access to Google Search or Google My Business services just hang up, play games with them, or scream in there ear like an alarm. In other words, have fun with it.